Oplurus saxicola

Oplurus saxicola
Opulus saxicola with tail twice as long as body in Tsimanampetsotsa National Park
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1) [1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Squamata
Suborder:	Iguania
Family:	Opluridae
Genus:	Oplurus
Species:	O. saxicola
Binomial name
Oplurus saxicola (Grandidier, 1869)

Oplurus saxicola (marked Madagascar swift) is a saxicolous (rock dwelling) iguana. The name of this species, saxicola, comes from the Latin saxum, meaning stone or rock, as they live within that environment.

Description

Extremely depressed reddish-green body, with marked spots. White abdomen. Large throat. Eyes very large, of triangular form. The scales of the forefeet are webbed; the thighs of rear legs are muscular. Scales on the neck are of similar dimensions to those on the back. ^[2]

Distribution

The marked Madagascar swift is endemic to the province of Toliara in south-west Madagascar.

References

1. "Oplurus saxicola". www.iucnredlist.org. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Retrieved 11 September 2014.
2. Grandidier, Alfred. "Descriptions de quelques animaux nouveaux découverts, pendant l'année 1869, sur la côte ouest de Madagascar". Revue et Magazine de Zoologie (Paris). Retrieved 10 September 2014.